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Security climate worsens for journalists in the Central African Republic

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Reporters Without Borders strongly condemns a recent increase in threats and violence against journalists, including threats by government officials.

“The intimidation of journalists and ransacking of media after the Seleka coalition seized power by force in March already dealt a severe blow to freedom of information, but a whole new level has been reached in the past few days,” Reporters Without Borders said.

“There has been a major escalation in harassment, threats and intimidation against journalists with privately-owned media, which is being carried out or encouraged by the authorities. We call on the government in Bangui to put a stop to this at once.”

Geoffroy Dotte, managing editor of the weekly Dernières Minutes, was kidnapped in Miskine on 3 August after being seen with a copy of a press release by supporters of former government minister Mohamed Moussa Dhaffane, who has been on hunger strike since 11 July.

Dotte, a member of the Group of Central African Privately-Owned Press Publishers and head of the Central African Journalists Union's print media section, was handed over to Seleka and was then taken blindfolded to an unknown location where he was interrogated for two hours, despite having shown his press card.

He was finally released in the evening after being ordered to say nothing about what had happened to him.

During a news conference at Bangui's Hotel Ledger on 27 July, the president's media adviser publicly insulted journalists with the privately-owned media, describing them as “tramps.”

Davy Kpenouwen, the managing editor of the daily Le Pays, was summoned by the prosecutor-general on 2 August and was threatened with arrest. Le Pays seems to have become a government target in connection with its coverage of the so-called “Badica affair,” although no libel action has been brought against it.

Telephone threats were received by reporters and publishers who took part in Radio Ndeke Luka's “Press Club” programme on 2 August.

In early June, the minister responsible for the news media, Christophe Gazam Betty, turned up uninvited at the headquarters of the daily Le Confident in the company of armed men, who ransacked its files and threatened its journalists.

Transitional President Michel Djotodia's meetings with journalists with the privately-owned media on 3 May and 27 July were positive as far as they went, but fell far short of what is clearly needed in the light of recent developments.

Reporters Without Borders condemned the behaviour of members of the Seleka rebel coalition, who robbed or ransacked several news media after toppling the government and entering the capital on 24 March.

The Central African Republic is ranked 65th out of 178 countries in the 2013 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.

Freedom Forum monitored FoE during the elections as it concerns citizens' freedom of expression through the ballot box. Therefore, any action creating an unfavourable atmosphere for the elections is also a violation of freedom of expression.

A recent HKJA survey indicates a slight rise in the Hong Kong Press Freedom Index after two consecutive years of decline. Journalists on the ground believe that the situation has worsened in 2016, compared to the year before. HKJA chairperson Sham Yee-lan explained that the slight increase in the Press Freedom Index was likely to be related to the emergence of online media, which has led to some diversity in the industry.

This report presents the findings of a three-month study focused on mapping, observing and analysing online harassment of journalists in Hungary. The study aimed to identify the types of harassment journalists are subject to, which journalists are typically harassed, who the harassers are, and how journalists cope with harassment.

Combining both violent and nonviolent methods, the Communist Party's policies are designed to curb the rapid growth of religious communities and eliminate certain beliefs and practices, while also harnessing aspects of religion that could serve the regime's political and economic interests.

Many journalists increasingly practice self-censorship, fearing retribution from security forces, military intelligence, and militant groups. Media outlets in 2016 remained under pressure to avoid reporting on or criticising human rights violations in counterterrorism operations. The Taliban and other armed groups threatened media outlets and targeted journalists and activists for their work.

Chinese authorities' enforced disappearance of critics from Hong Kong and other countries in 2016 garnered headlines globally. Beijing's decision to interfere in a politically charged court case in Hong Kong in November undermined judicial independence and the territory's autonomy. In the ethnic minority regions of Xinjiang and Tibet, Beijing continued its highly repressive rule, curtailing political activity and many peaceful expressions of ethnic and religious identity.

Bangladesh witnessed a spate of violent attacks against secular bloggers, academics, gay rights activists, foreigners, and members of religious minorities in 2016. Several laws were proposed during the year to increase restrictions on freedom of expression.

Freedom Forum observed a relatively peaceful atmosphere for the media this year (2016) with a significant decline in the number of press freedom violations. FF recorded only 25 incidents of press freedom violations during 2016 versus 83 in 2015.

Pakistan is among the countries that do not properly investigate and prosecute crimes against media professionals. Because of the near absolute level of impunity, most of the people who attack, injure or even murder media journalists in Pakistan remain free.

2016 is a highly significant year for Cambodian democracy. Looking back, 2016 marks 25 years since the conclusion of the Paris Peace Agreements (the “Paris Agreements”), which brought an end to 20 years of conflict in the Kingdom of Cambodia (“Cambodia”) and laid the framework for a political settlement based on human rights and liberal democracy; looking forward, 2016 marks the unofficial start of the lead‐up to the local and national elections in 2017 and 2018, respectively, as political actors across the spectrum begin to position themselves.

In the 27 cases of journalists murdered for their work in India since CPJ began keeping records in 1992, there have been no convictions. More than half of those killed reported regularly on corruption. The cases of Jagendra Singh, Umesh Rajput, and Akshay Singh, who died between 2011 and 2015, show how small-town journalists face greater risk in their reporting than those from larger outlets, and how India's culture of impunity is leaving the country's press vulnerable to threats and attacks

Latin America is, by far, the most dangerous region of the world for environmental human rights defenders (EHRDs). The lack of effective guarantees of human rights protection in Latin American States has created this dire situation.

Violence against journalists in Europe increased in the second quarter of 2016, reports submitted to Index on Censorship’s Mapping Media Freedom platform show, as a government crackdown in Turkey intensified and protests turned violent in countries from France to Finland.

With the environment now recognized as a major challenge for humankind, Reporters Without Borders believes that particular attention should be paid to the journalists who take greats risk to investigate sensitive, environment-related subjects. The report highlights a steady deterioration in the situation for environmental reporters, who are increasingly exposed to many kinds of pressure, threats and violence.

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